


What's Beyond The Sky

by ashurbadaktu



Category: Captain America (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Crossovers & Fandom Fusions, F/M, Gen, M/M, Multi
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-04-24
Updated: 2014-04-24
Packaged: 2018-01-20 15:03:54
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,489
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1514795
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ashurbadaktu/pseuds/ashurbadaktu
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A canon-fusion with 'Steins Gate', with important bits from 'Captain America: The Winter Soldier': The Man out of Time is more than just a moniker when Steve Rogers discovers that the strange alloy of his shield has picked up something from the Tesseract and the opening of a transdimensional gate.   But what does it mean for him, for the Avengers, and the world at large?</p>
            </blockquote>





	What's Beyond The Sky

**Author's Note:**

> I am not doing this fic idea even a MODICUM of the justice it deserves, but being as I can't get this plot bunny out of my head, here we go. Once again, the bare bones of this are cribbed off of one of the BEST animes I've seen in recent years and I, of course, couldn't stop myself from piling sadness on sadness between these two series. SPOILERS FOR STEINS GATE AHEAD.
> 
> PLEASE NOTE that some of the Avengers canon that's mentioned is grabbed from research and not from terrible amounts of personal knowledge. I apologize for any mistakes or oversimplifications. I also apologize for any typos or massive mistakes as this is not beta read.

 

 

In 1944, James Buchanan Barnes falls from a train and dies.

He doesn't lose his arm.  He doesn't get picked up by Russian nationals.  He doesn't become a weapon.  There is no Winter Soldier, no perfect American lookingfeelingacting assassin kept under ice, brought out for the most important of missions.

In 1944, James Buchanan Barnes dies.  And two months later, Captain America brings down a plane in the Arctic.

 

\--

 

In 2012, a rift opens in the middle of New York City, powered by an item of immense power and immeasurable worth.  And in that city, a man out of time fights to keep people alive.

He feels as if everything he's ever done was for nothing.  He feels as the destruction of his home, his  _city_ , is all his fault.  He feels as if he could have done more, done better.  

And when the Tesseract returns to Asgard, he feels changed but it's only later that he discovers how. 

There's press conferences and he's always hated them.  Of the many things he can remember like it's right in front of him, his lines have never been one of them.  He writes them on the inside of his shield, like he used to, except instead of staying there like they ought to, they fade into the notecard that he'd affixed to the inside.

He tries it a few times.  Each time, every time, the words disappear.  He doesn't know who to tell because it's crazy, completely crazy, but he has to find out what it is so he experiments.  He tests.  And that's when he discovers how it works.

He writes the date first, then the message: it disappears.  He writes the date first, forgets, and then writes the message...

And a memory of the words appears in his mind, written on the page a clear day before it ever would have been there.  That's when he figures it out.  That's when he realizes what he can do. 

He considers it, the idea of it.  He thinks of telling Tony or Natasha or even Bruce, but he can't quite do it.  Not yet.  He tests it a few more times, different dates, different words.  And each time, as it disappears, the memory comes to him of reading the words two days ago, a week ago, two months ago.  And with it is the memory of those days without the words.  They stand beside one another, both as clear as day: the empty card and the words.  

He visits the Air and Space museum and an idea occurs to him, a wonderful, horrible idea.  He considers it a few times, punches his punching bag until even he's sore.  He thinks about it and thinks about it and thinks about it.  And finally, tired, sore, hurting, he does it and prays to God he's not making the biggest mistake of his life.

_January 1st, 1945 - Don't let Bucky pick up the shield on the train.  Don't let Bucky fall out of the train. Don't let Bucky fall out of the train._

And the world fades to white. 

 

\-- 

 

In 1945, Captain Steve Rogers and Sergeant James Buchanan Barnes go down in the Arctic to save the world.  Whatever else, they go down together.

 

\--

 

In 2012, they come back out together.

It takes Bucky longer to recover, because whatever else had been done to him hadn't been nearly as complete as it had been for Steve.  He loses his arm to frostbite and SHIELD supplies a new one, better than ever, and it's almost the same as before they went under in all the most important ways.

They get an apartment together, Bucky cooks like he always did, and Steve cleans, because Bucky's lazy when it comes to getting the dusting done.  Here, now, the world doesn't care about the kind of life they'd always dreamed of and no one at SHIELD is ever sure they'll ever leave the honeymoon stage.  They spar down at the gym because every once in a while, Fury has something for them to do and soon enough, the world isn't so scary and huge.

It's Tony's sardonic smile.

Natasha's sarcastic eyeroll.

Clint's half-assed grumbling need for coffee.

Thor's enthusiastic  _everything._

Bruce's tired sighs.

And eventually, it's jogging past Sam every morning.

Steve remembers the other life.  He remembers waking up alone, coming out into the twenty first century with nothing left to him but memories, ghosts, and Peggy's wrinkled hands grasping his.  He remembers not knowing what could ever make him happy while Nat desperately tries to pull it off anyway via Leslie from accounting or Carmen who works in the mail room.  Which is why, eventually, he tells Tony and the rest of them about the shield.  Because the shield never stopped working.

 

\--

 

_Howard: Don't go out tonight.  Stay in and watch a movie._

It's simple and stupid but the world goes white and Tony's bitching to his father on his cellphone when everything comes back into focus.  His mother's inviting them all home for Thanksgiving but while he'll sing the praises of her lasagna all the live long day, the woman can't roast a bird to save her life. 

Sam starts in about the holiday being a time for family and what a weak ass excuse some dry turkey is for not going home to see his family and Steve can't help but chime in that Tony could always take care of it himself.

 

\--

 

  
_Natasha:_ Не сомневайтесь в ваше сердце. Идти с ним. Убирайся.*

They're not even sure how the messages are getting through, because the shield should be in the Artic, but Steve feels the world fade in and out and Natasha's smiles are a little brighter, a little less brittle.   

He checks her file and it's significantly thinner, less red, and the Black Widow, though being no less deadly, shows them how to drink properly and makes them sit through a torrent of Russian movies that are depressing enough to make her tear up on occasion.

Bucky rolls his eyes every time she puts them on, but Sam distracts him with tales of a hot Russian waitress he'd known and the quiet discussion only makes her smack them once the whole time.  Steve smiles at both of them and his chest feels so warm.  So heavy.

 

\--

_Barney: Family is family._

Having two archers on the team is great, except for when they bicker.  It'd taken Steve a while to figure out how to get them to work together, but eventually he'd figured out that while the elder Barton took orders and specific requests exceptionally well, the younger was best left to his own devices.   

Between Steve, Barney, Bucky, and Sam, the VA gets their fair share of celebrity speakers, though Steve and Bucky are the ones that get some of the older folks to come in.  Eventually, they work out something of a mentoring program: keep the old ones caring and teach the young ones the little tricks and tips they need for adjusting to civilian life, show them that it gets better.

 

\--

_Bruce: It's not ready yet.  Don't test your machine._  

Tony gets in trouble with Betty a lot.  That's what happens when you keep a married man up in your lab until 4 am consistantly.  Bruce is a hearty guy, but he has a tendency to fall asleep too easily and she's tired of having to pick him up from the wrong train stop. 

Sam's the one who starts texting him time warnings, but it's Barney who makes sure that the phone is on and not set to silent.  Steve could kiss him, if only because it means that Bucky stops mentioning his theories on Bruce and Tony's torrid affair where Steve can hear it.  He so resolutely doesn't want to think of Tony OR Bruce that way.  Bucky, shameless as always, calls him an old man and makes the 'theories' wilder.

Thankfully, they stop before Bucky starts getting graphic and Betty doesn't have to come down to the Tower to kill them all in their sleep.

Sam gets a cake made for him and everyone gets a piece but Bucky, but he admits that's fair.

 

—

_Frigg: Loki knows of his heritage.  You know how to talk to him.  Don't let your husband do it._  

Sam hates when Thor's brother visits, so Steve makes sure to hang out with him more whenever the smug little primadonna is there.  Bucky, oddly enough, gets along famously with him, and Steve can never thank Sam enough for having his phone on him when they get back the one time when Bucky is dressed in 'proper' Asgardian fashion.   

Sam's also there to distract Loki when Steve steals Bucky away for looking amazing and the 'gift' is tossed to the ground.  Sam is and always has been the very best of wingmen.

 

That’s why everything changes when the Falcon is shot from the sky during a battle.

**Author's Note:**

> * Do not doubt your heart. Go with him. Get out.


End file.
